Her Colorado Sheriff. Patricia Thayer

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       Chapter Three

      The next evening after the sun had gone down, Cullen stood at his kitchen window looking toward the cottage. After Trent’s strong urging, he’d officially moved in to the ranch house. Now his attention was focused on the other tenants living about a hundred yards away from his back door. Bright lights illuminated the small structure, and with the lack of curtains, he could easily see inside.

      Shelby Townsend was busy at the stove, maybe cooking one of her specialties. Her rich mahogany hair was pulled up into a big clip, but some wild curls found their way out. She had on an oversize T-shirt and a pair of jeans covering her trim figure.

      He quickly shook away his wayward thoughts and turned his attention to the table, where the boy sat, going through his photo book. Shelby said something to the child that caused them both to laugh. A soft lyrical sound seemed to vibrate through his chest, causing that familiar ache, reminding him of his solitary life.

      He turned away, knowing that Miss Townsend could be a distraction if he let her. He thought back to when his shift had ended this morning, and how he had to fight from stopping by the café. Even after one of the deputies came into work all chatty about the pretty brunette Bess had hired, he’d driven home. Well, back to the motel, but just long enough to pack up his things and finally move in to the ranch house. He didn’t want the new tenants to be out here all alone.

      Something else nagged at him, causing him to want to know more about the attractive, blue-eyed woman who’d moved twelve hundred miles from her home for a temporary job. The cop in him was suspicious of her motives, especially after the recent death of her sister. So many questions.

      The microwave buzzer went off, pulling him back to reality. He realized he’d been standing there in the dark looking into other people’s lives.

      Hell, he was one pathetic guy who didn’t have a life. He turned away and took the casserole out of the microwave. Once the word of his move had circulated through the Hidden Springs family, the contributions poured in, starting with sheets and towels. Mysteriously, his refrigerator had been stocked with food staples; butter, eggs, bacon and milk. Brooke had added a chicken casserole, and she’d also taken some to Shelby and Ryan at the cottage.

      Cullen walked over and flipped on the overhead light, then reached in the drawer and found a fork, then poured a glass of milk and sat down at the large table.

      He wasn’t sure if he was ready to make a home here in this small town, not beyond the next few months of his interim job anyway. He wasn’t the down-home type of guy.

      Ever since he’d been a little boy, he wanted to be a cop like his dad. He’d idolized Neal Brannigan, the highly decorated, by-the-book cop.

      And it had been Cullen’s goal to follow after him.

      Since the day he’d entered the police academy, he’d been dedicated to his job, a job that he had learned would cost him relationships and friends.

      He’d worked his way up the ranks from patrol officer and earned detective, then went into a special department for white-collar crimes. He found he liked it, and best of all, he was good at going after cybercriminals. Then he messed with the wrong people, and he got too close to breaking up an illegal credit card ring.

      The next thing he knew he’d been arrested for taking bribes. They found large deposits in his bank account, all the evidence he’d compiled on the ring had disappeared and Internal Affairs came in to investigate. He’d been humiliated, but the worst part, he didn’t get any support from his own father. Captain Neal Brannigan said he had to stay neutral. Cullen knew his father had always been a hard-ass, but he never thought the man would desert his own son.

      It had taken nearly a year, and a chunk of his savings, before he was cleared of all the charges, and reinstated in the department. The question was, did he want to go back? How could he trust his fellow officers, if they didn’t have his back? Maybe that was the reason he didn’t trust many people.

      Cullen took a last bite of food, then carried his plate to the sink, his thoughts still on his new neighbor. Even though he found nothing about Shelby Townsend, he also searched the national database for information on her sister, Georgia Hughes. Only a month ago Mrs. Hughes was murdered in her home.

      He glanced at the cottage again. It seemed that Miss Townsend had withheld a lot of information the other night. Not that she’d been involved in any criminal activities, but the cop in him sure was curious.

      There was a soft knock on the back door and he wondered if it could be Trent. He walked through the kitchen and flipped on the light in the mudroom to find Shelby and Ryan standing on the stoop.

      He СКАЧАТЬ